"Oops" I said after I siphoned my BTA

First off let me start by clarifying the ID of this thing. I bought this from my lfs under the impression it was a bubble tip anemone. Recently on a local reef forum I was asking for ideas on how to remove one of my split bta's from this rock (the rock is so rigid that I can't use credit card trick) I have tried blowing it with powerhead, ice cube & agitation. I didn't try turning it upside down becuase I only want(ed) one of the anemone's moved. I posted a pic before it was split, this person said it was a bubble coral not anemone. I asked then if bubble corals split, he said no. I posted the pic of after it had split, and then of course he has no comment. I pretty much gave up on moving it. SO... I ask you all, is this a bta or not? The first pic is of it what I showed this person, which I took about a week ago:



Now here's my real issue. Today while doing a water change I wasn't paying attention apparantly and sucked up part of the alleged bta. It looks very bad. I can't remove it from the rock for QT because of the kind of rock it's on (as stated above). I have considered taking the rock out and splitting it in half and moving it to QT that way. What do you all think? What would you do? What should I do?? Do you think it has a chance of surviving or regenerating it's injured parts?? Here is a pic of it a few mins ago:

 

I would just give it some time and keep a close eye on it. If it starts to look really bad and begins to secrete stuff from the middle (a good amount not a little bit) it's probably dying and you should get it out of there ASAP. I gotta say I've never seen a bulb tip like that - very interesting! I hope it is one!?!?!?!?!?!?

 

That looks to be a bubble coral to me. Looks like it's got a hard skeleton. I think the splitting you are talking about is actually tissue reccesion.

 

It doesn't have a hard skeleton, or at least I don't think it does. It is attached to that rock that it's on but it does move back and forth on it. For instance sometimes it's closer to the edges and then moves back to the middle. It may be a bubble coral though, I'm not that educated on them so I have no idea really.

Do bubble corals have mouths? This thing has many mouths and loves to be fed, it puts out sweepers at night and every once and a while "poops" out of a mouth. I've had it for about 8 months now, it "split" about a month ago. It's always been very full and seems happy, I wonder why it would have tissue recession in the middle of it like that if it seemed fine? Also it was normal looking one day, the next day there were two, it wasn't a slow process that I would assume would be recession.

Here's a pic of it a few months ago...

 

I hate to say thsi but your looking at a bubble Coral, here is another one close to it.


Got this from Pearl Bubble Coral - Plerogyra sp. (flexuosa?)

 

Bc, it is a bubble coral and yes it does have a hard encasement (if you don't like the word skeleton) that it comes out of and retract in to. It is one organism and they are fragile and prone to infection and disease if torn or damaged. It may fight and be fine but if it starts receding you will have to QT (home or LFS). I would suggest using a good Amino Acid formula to help it repair it's damaged tissue.

 

That's fine if it is bubble coral, I had just never had either before so I didn't know. Fine with me. I would assume then that they act very anemone-ish.

 

look allot like them, but can't move from place to place in a tank like a BTA.

 

well he was trying to remove it from the "rock" so im sure it is damaged

 

once i had a fish get stuck in my siphon tube and i had to suck it into my mouth and spit it back into the tank to save it. which in hindsight i wonder why i didn't just try to blow it out the hose instead of sucking but oh well. atleast you didn't have to suck it out.

agree with the others its a bubble coral.